Keenan found the perfect way to wrap up her career with Vanity Fair: winning the grand pony hunter championship at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show in Harrisburg. Today, Oct. 11, the pair took second in the under saddle class. Coupled with yesterday’s two blues over fences, Keenan took the large pony and grand pony hunter titles with 26 points for Betsee Parker. Victoria Colvin picked up reserve honors aboard Scott Stewart’s For The Laughter.

Keenan and “Cocoa” have been a force to be reckoned with in the large pony ring for during their 1½ year partnership, most recently topping the USEF Pony Finals (Ky.), winning the WCHR Pony Challenge at Capital Challenge (Md.) and earning reserve honors at the Hampton Classic (N.Y.). But for Keenan, winning at Harrisburg is a little bit different.

“In this ring you feel more closed in, but it’s also a different feeling having the lights on you,” said Keenan, New York, N.Y.. “This is my last time doing it with the ponies, and so I’m trying to get everything digested so I can enjoy it all now.”

“Cocoa’s easy because you do nothing, but it’s hard because when you’re used to do actually riding all the other ponies,” she continued. “His favorite color is blue—he likes his blue ribbons.”

Though she’s spent plenty of time accepting those blues, 11-year-old Keenan, who trains with Patricia Griffith of Heritage Farm, doesn’t take her wins for granted. Along the way she’s figured out how to keep her nerves—and her expectations—in check.

“Right before I go in I have to remember to breathe,” she said. “But this year I was just worried about doing my best, and whatever I got, I got. It’s my last year and there’s nothing I have to prove. I went into the stake with Beau Rivage and chipped at the first fence. It happens.”

No one was more thrilled to see Vanity Fair earn the grand pony title than Parker.
Not only did she get to watch her pony take the championship, but her second entry, Liseter Clever Star (Liseter Clever Jasper—Clever Caution) earned a third and fifth over fences as well.

Since an old injury keeps Parker out of the saddle last fall she decided to embrace a new challenge: scouting out top ponies and matching them with good riders.

“My test for myself was I wanted to buy two larges that were extremely different,” said Parker. “ ‘Brucie’ is a Welsh with long, classic bloodlines, and Cocoa is a Dutch-bred warmblood of unknown breeding. Both of them are different athletes and both riders ride differently, yet they arrive at the same goal. I liked that.”
 
After two years in the winner’s circle together, Keenan and Vanity Fair will have their swan song show at the upcoming Washington International Horse Show (D.C), then Vanity Fair will hop on a truck to Middleburg, Va., to live with Parker.

Keenan may be back in the winner’s circle next year at Harrisburg, but it will be in a new division. She’s retiring from her role as a full-time pony jock after this season to move up to horses.

A Long-Awaited Win
Riding Ingenue to the small pony hunter championship at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show was a dream three years in the making for Allison Toffolon.

Toffolon fell for the pony when she first came to Heritage Farm. But the mare came up for sale in 2005, a bit too early in Toffolon’s career to take over the ride on a regular small pony. So when she finally got the chance to show her this fall Toffolon jumped on the chance.

“Yesterday it was only about my third time showing her, so I was kind of nervous but I think the nerves helped me,” said Toffolon, Bronxville, N.Y. “I think being nervous made me want to do better.”

Toffolon picked up two blues and a red over fences to win the tricolor for Chansonette Farm, edging out Emma Mandarino and Hilton HHonors who took reserve. “My trainer [Griffith] said that I was really consistent all weekend,” said Toffolon, 12. “It’s my first time doing this well at a big show.”

Barnmate Keenan had been riding the 11-year-old Welsh Cross (Rosedale Elinvar—Vignette) until Toffolon took over the ride at the Hampton Classic (N.Y.). The pair had only two shows to get to know each other before they came to Harrisburg.

Patton’s Pretty Pony
Sometimes it is all about looking good.

The judges originally gave the top call in yesterday’s conformation class to Kara Chad and Hearts Desire, but promoted Patton’s Bikini Beach after getting a good look at the ponies in the lineup.

“It was nerve-wracking because they pointed at someone back there [in line] to move up but they didn’t even look at me,” said Patton. “I didn’t think I was going to move up and thought, ‘second’s fine, I’ll take it.’ Then [the judge] pointed at me and he moved me up. I was really happy but I felt bad for Kara [Chad] because the same thing happened to her at Capital Challenge with another pony.”

That move clinched the championship for Patton and Bikini Beach, while Chad and Stone Ridge’s Hearts Desire took reserve honors.
“She was so perfect. Yesterday she was amazing and did everything I asked her to do. It all came out great.”

Moving down in the conformation line-up to Bikini Beach shouldn’t dishearten her competitors. The gorgeous Arab-Welsh cross topped models their last trip to Devon (Pa.) and USEF Pony Finals (Ky.)

Patton, Nashville, Tenn., started riding the 8-year-old pony a year and a half ago, when she was still very green. But she proved so easy-going Patton’s trainers John Roper and Kelly Mullen decided to let her move up to the regular division after just a few shows in the green division.

“She’s sweet—sometimes. But she’s definitely a chestnut mare, so she can be a little bratty. If you have treats she’s really nice,” said Patton, 13. “She’s just my baby. I love her so much”